San Jose State Spartans issued the following announcement.
TUCSON, Ariz., December 20, 2020 – The 2020 Arizona Bowl will boast a clash of conference champions. The sixth playing of the Bowl will feature the Mid-American Champion Ball State Cardinals, who will square off with the undefeated Mountain West Champion San Jose State Spartans. The pairing of champions marks the Arizona Bowl as one of the feature contests of the postseason and could be the Group of 5 game of the year.
Executive Director Kym Adair remarked that the championship level matchup is a big win for a young Bowl: "We are thrilled to invite these two Conference Champions to the Arizona Bowl to battle it out one last time this season. The adversity that each of these teams have had to overcome to win their Conference Championship matches is unprecedented. We know that they will both be determined to finish their historic seasons with a win at the Arizona Bowl ensuring that this game will be competitive until the end."
San Jose State (7-0) is perhaps the story of the year in college football. Having been forced by the pandemic to play three home games out of the state of California, the Spartans responded by clinching a spot in the Mountain West title game. Coach Brent Brennan led his crew to a dominant 34-20 win over Boise State. The Spartans will look to make Tucson their fourth straight home win, away from home. San Jose State is 4-0 in their last four bowl games dating back to the 1990's, with their last bowl win coming in the 2015 AutoNation Cure Bowl over Georgia State.
"San Jose State University is proud to represent the Mountain West as its conference champion and accept the invitation to play in the 2020 Arizona Bowl in Tucson, Ariz. Our season is one which is a 'touch point' for everyone connected with our wonderful university and one we will remember the rest of our lives. We look forward to arriving in Tucson, participating in all the pregame events, and playing the Mid-American Conference champion Ball State in this year's Arizona Bowl," said San Jose State University Athletics Director Marie Tuite.
On the other side of the football, the upstart Cardinals of Ball State (6-1) will bring their physical brand of football to the desert looking to make it two trophies in as many tries. An underdog in the Mid-American Championship, Ball State put on a defensive clinic upsetting 13-point favorite Buffalo 38-28. The Cardinals have a postseason mission of making history by earning their first ever Bowl victory. To date Ball State is 0-9 in previous Bowl contests. The last postseason appearance for BSU was in 2013. Head Coach Mike Neu has his Cardinals flying high on their way to the Old Pueblo as winners of six straight games.
The Arizona Bowl will kick off December 31st at 12:00 p.m. (MT)/11:00 a.m. (PT)/2:00 p.m. (ET). The game will take place at Arizona Stadium and be presented by CBS Sports on CBS Television Network.
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